John Ratzenberger | |
---|---|
Born | April 6, 1947 Bridgeport, Connecticut, U.S. |
Alma mater | Sacred Heart University |
Occupation | Actor |
Years active | 1973–present |
Agents |
|
Political party | Republican |
Spouses |
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Children | 2 |
Honours | PhD, Humane Letters, Sacred Heart University |
Website | ratzenberger |
John Dezso Ratzenberger (born April 6, 1947) [1] is an American actor. He is best known for playing the character Cliff Clavin on the comedy series Cheers , for which he earned two Primetime Emmy nominations. Ratzenberger reprised the role in the short-lived spin-off The Tortellis , an episode of Wings, as well as in an episode of Frasier . He has voiced various characters in several Pixar animated feature films including Hamm in the Toy Story franchise, The Abominable Snowman in the Monsters, Inc. franchise, Mack in the Cars franchise, The Underminer in The Incredibles franchise, Fritz in the Inside Out franchise, and many others.
Ratzenberger began his entertainment career while living in London in the 1970s. He acted in and wrote film and television through the 1970s and early 1980s before returning to America. At an audition for a role in a new sitcom, Ratzenberger created the character of Cliff Clavin. Cheers (1982–1993) was a success and went on to run for 11 years. After Cheers, he began voicing characters for Pixar; Ratzenberger's first role was Hamm in Pixar's debut feature film Toy Story (1995), and he would continue to voice characters in many subsequent Pixar films. Including voice acting and cameos, he is the third highest-grossing actor of all time.
John Dezso Ratzenberger was born on Easter Sunday, April 6, 1947, [3] in Bridgeport, Connecticut, the son of Bertha Veronica ( née Grochowski), and Dezso Alexander Ratzenberger, a WWII veteran who had been a combat engineer in the Philippines. [4] [5] John's father, Dezso, was of Austrian and Hungarian descent, and John's mother was of Polish ancestry. [6] Ratzenberger attended St. Ann's School and Bassick High School in Bridgeport and then Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, Connecticut. [1] In 1969, Ratzenberger worked at the Woodstock Festival as a heavy equipment operator and as part of the crew building the stage. [7] John moved to London in 1971, where he began his acting, writing, and directing career. [1]
Ratzenberger began his career in the performing arts while living in London, England. [1] Through the 1970s, he performed with Ray Hassett as the comedic theatrical duo Sal's Meat Market, which toured throughout Europe for eight years. [8] Sal's Meat Market heavily influenced Peter Richardson and Nigel Planer as a duo in The Outer Limits and in The Comic Strip . [9] His first role in a major feature film was as a patron in The Ritz (1976). Throughout the late 1970s and early 1980s, Ratzenberger appeared in various roles in feature films throughout Europe including: A Bridge Too Far , filmed in Holland, as Lieutenant James Megellas; Superman , as a missile controller; Superman II , as the NASA control man; Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back as Major Derlin; Outland as a doomed mine worker named Tarlow; and Gandhi, filmed in India, playing an American lieutenant.
Ratzenberger played mail carrier Cliff Clavin on the sitcom Cheers . As an improv artist, he asked the producers if they had written a bar know-it-all character; the producers decided it was a great idea, and the character of Cliff Clavin was born. [10] Ratzenberger also came up with the idea for Cliff's trademark white socks, which he wore as a tribute to French comedian Jacques Tati. [11] Cliff became known for his outlandish stories, trivia, and his trademarked (and oft repeated), "It's a little known fact..." Cliff and Norm, the primary customer characters of the iconic bar, Cheers, played buddies who met at Cheers to talk about the day or nothing in particular. Ratzenberger was nominated for an Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series in 1985 and again in 1986. [12] [13] Ratzenberger provided the voice for an animated version of Cliff on The Simpsons sixth-season episode "Fear of Flying". He also played the role in the short-lived spin-off The Tortellis and in an episode of Wings , which was made by the same creators.
Ratzenberger has contributed voice work for several animated projects, most notably Pixar productions.
Ratzenberger has voiced characters in 23 Pixar films. [14] His roles include:
According to Ratzenberger, Pixar's tradition of including him as a good luck charm in every film beginning with the studio's first film, Toy Story , was due to him being good friends with former Pixar filmmaker John Lasseter, [15] who directed or executive-produced each of the first 20 Pixar films. Ratzenberger's tenure at Pixar was parodied during the end credits of Cars , where his character, Mack, watches car-themed versions of Pixar films (Toy Car Story, Monster Trucks, Inc., and A Bug's Life, the latter of which references the Volkswagen Beetle). Mack notes that all the characters that John Ratzenberger has played had excellent voice actors until he realizes that they are performed by the same actor, at which point he remarks, "They're just using the same actor over and over," and asks, "What kind of a cut-rate production is this?!" Ratzenberger stated his favorite Pixar role was Hamm from the Toy Story series, [16] and he has given honorable mention to P.T. Flea from A Bug's Life . [17]
Following Lasseter's exit from Pixar, Ratzenberger revealed he was not a fan of the regime that replaced Lasseter or the studio's subsequent films, claiming "[...] they suck", and disliked the political messaging that he felt was being placed in the films. [15] Pixar's 23rd feature film, Soul (2020), was the first Pixar film that did not involve Ratzenberger himself, though it did instead feature a character animated in his likeness as a cameo according to the film’s co-director Kemp Powers; [18] the cameo was also confirmed by director Pete Docter on the film's audio commentary track. After having voiced a character in every Pixar film from Toy Story (1995) through Onward (2020), Ratzenberger would not have another role in any Pixar film until their 28th feature film, Inside Out 2 (2024). [15] [19]
Ratzenberger has continued to work with Lasseter, who produces all feature films and executive-produces all series at Skydance Animation. [20] His roles include:
Aside from the Pixar and Skydance productions, Ratzenberger voiced Harland the jet tug in Disneytoon Studios' Planes (2013) [24] and Brodi the plane in its sequel, Planes: Fire & Rescue (2014), [25] [26] which are spin-offs of Pixar's Cars series and executive-produced by Lasseter. [27] Additionally, Ratzenberger provided the voice for Aniyaku the assistant manager in the English dub version of Studio Ghibli’s Spirited Away (2002), [28] which Lasseter also executive-produced.
Ratzenberger also reprised his role as Yeti (now named Adorable) and voiced a new character named Bernard in the Disney Television Animation series Monsters at Work (2021-24), which is set after the main events of Pixar's Monsters, Inc. [29]
Ratzenberger lived in London for 10 years. [30] Since 1994, he has lived in Vashon, Washington. [31] Ratzenberger married Georgia Stiny in 1984; during their 20-year marriage they had two children together before divorcing in 2004. [4] He then married Julie Blichfeldt in November 2012. [32]
Ratzenberger developed a packaging-alternatives product made from biodegradable and non-toxic recycled paper as a safe alternative to foam peanuts and plastic bubble wrap. This product, SizzlePak, was manufactured by his company Eco-Pak Industries, which Ratzenberger co-founded in 1989. [33] In 1992, he sold Eco-Pack to Ranpak Corp. [33]
Ratzenberger is a Republican. During the 2008 presidential race, Ratzenberger campaigned for John McCain, appearing with former Cheers co-star Kelsey Grammer at several Republican party events. [34] [35] Ratzenberger was outspoken in opposition of the 2010 health care reform bill, referring to it as socialism. [36] On January 17, 2010, he appeared and endorsed Scott Brown for the United States Senate at Mechanics Hall in Worcester, Massachusetts. Ratzenberger campaigned for Republican Josh Mandel of Ohio for state treasurer in 2010 and served as master of ceremonies for Mandel's inauguration into the position in 2011. [37] He considered running for the U.S. Senate in Connecticut in 2012. [38]
Ratzenberger endorsed Mitt Romney in 2012. [39] He appeared on Your World with Neil Cavuto to support Donald Trump's candidacy during the 2016 presidential race, shortly after Trump was declared the presumptive Republican nominee. [40] He praised his performance as president in 2017, saying he had done "a wonderful job as far as manufacturing is concerned". [41]
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Ratzenberger expressed his support for the United States Postal Service (USPS) in 2020 via Cameo and suggested people who wished to help them donate and buy presents for Christmas early. [42] [43]
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1976 | The Ritz | Patron | |
1977 | Twilight's Last Gleaming | Sgt. Kopecki | |
A Bridge Too Far | Lt. James Megellas | ||
Valentino | Newshound | ||
1978 | Warlords of Atlantis | Fenn | |
Superman | Missile controller | ||
1979 | Hanover Street | Sergeant John Lucas | |
Arabian Adventure | Achmed | ||
Yanks | Corporal Cook | ||
The Bitch | Hal Leonard | ||
1980 | The Empire Strikes Back | Major Bren Derlin | |
Motel Hell | Drummer | ||
Superman II | Controller No. 1 | ||
1981 | Outland | Tarlow | |
Ragtime | Policeman | ||
Reds | Communist Leader | ||
The Good Soldier | Jimmy | ||
1982 | Battletruck | Rusty | AKA Warlords of the 21st Century |
Firefox | Chief Peck | ||
Gandhi | American Lieutenant | ||
1984 | Protocol | Security Guard on TV | Uncredited |
1985 | The Falcon and the Snowman | Detective | |
1987 | House II: The Second Story | Bill | |
Timestalkers | General Joe Brodsky | ||
1988 | She's Having a Baby | Himself | |
1995 | Toy Story | Hamm | Voice |
1997 | That Darn Cat | Dusty | |
Bad Day on the Block | Al Calavito | ||
One Night Stand | Phil | ||
1998 | A Bug's Life | P.T. Flea | Voice |
1999 | Toy Story 2 | Hamm | |
2001 | Monsters, Inc. | Yeti | |
2002 | Spirited Away | Aniyaku | |
2003 | Finding Nemo | Fish School | |
2004 | The Incredibles | The Underminer | |
2006 | Something New | Brian's Father | |
Cars | Mack; Hamm Truck, Abominable Snowplow, P.T. Flea Car | Voice; Additional Voices | |
2007 | Ratatouille | Mustafa | Voice |
Your Friend the Rat | P.T. Flea | Voice; Short film; direct-to-video; archive footage from A Bug's Life | |
2008 | The Village Barbershop | Art Leroldi | |
WALL-E | John | Voice | |
2009 | Up | Construction Foreman Tom | |
2010 | Toy Story 3 | Hamm | |
What If... | Mike | ||
2011 | Toy Story Toons: Hawaiian Vacation | Hamm | Voice; Short film |
Cars 2 | Mack | Voice | |
Toy Story Toons: Small Fry | Hamm | Voice; Short film | |
2012 | The Woodcarver | Ernest | |
Brave | Gordon | Voice | |
Toy Story Toons: Partysaurus Rex | Hamm | Voice; Short film | |
2013 | Monsters University | Yeti | Voice |
Planes | Harland | ||
Super Buddies | Marvin "Gramps" Livingstone | Direct-to-video | |
In the Name of God | Reverend Thomas | ||
2014 | Planes: Fire & Rescue | Brodie | Voice |
2015 | Russell Madness | Mick Vaughn | |
Inside Out | Fritz | Voice | |
The Good Dinosaur | Earl | ||
2016 | Finding Dory | Husband Crab (Bill) | |
Pup Star [44] | Mutt | Voice; direct-to-video | |
2017 | Pup Star: Better 2Gether [44] | Salty | |
Cars 3 | Mack | Voice | |
Coco | Juan Ortodoncia | ||
2018 | Shifting Gears | Conrad Baines | |
Incredibles 2 | The Underminer | Voice | |
2019 | Toy Story 4 | Hamm | |
2020 | Onward | Construction Worker Fennwick | |
2022 | Luck | Rootie | |
2024 | Inside Out 2 | Fritz | |
Spellbound | Milo the Monster Handler |
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1979 | Secret Army | Staff Sergeant Drexler | Episode: "The Execution" |
1980 | ITV Playhouse | Tom Phillips | Episode: "Friends in Space" |
1981 | The Good Soldier | Jimmy | Television film |
Goliath Awaits | Bill Sweeney | ||
Private Schulz | American Newsreel Commentator | Uncredited voice; episode #1.5 | |
Code Red | Inspector Ray Allen | Episode: "All That Glitters" | |
1982 | Hill Street Blues | Phony Cop | Episode: "Some Like it Hot-Wired" |
1982–93 | Cheers | Cliff Clavin | 274 episodes; directed 4 episodes |
1983 | Wizards and Warriors | Archie | Episode: "The Dungeon of Death" |
1984 | Magnum, P.I. | Walt Brewster | Episode: "The Legacy of Garwood Huddle" |
1985 | St. Elsewhere | Cliff Clavin | Episode: "Cheers" |
The Love Boat | Marty Elder | Episode: "A Day in Port" | |
1986 | Combat Academy | Mr. Barnett | Television film |
1987 | Timestalkers | General Joe Brodsky | |
The Tortellis | Cliff Clavin | Episode: "Frankie Comes to Dinner" | |
1988 | Small World | Morris Zapp | 6 episodes |
Mickey's 60th Birthday | Cliff Clavin | Television film | |
1990 | Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color | Episode: "Disneyland's 35th Anniversary Celebration" | |
Wings | Episode: "The Story of Joe" | ||
The Earth Day Special | Television film | ||
Camp Cucamonga | Marvin Schector | ||
1990–92 | Captain Planet and the Planeteers | Rigger | Voice; 24 episodes |
1992 | Nurses | Mr. Hafner | Episode: "Illicit Transfers" |
1993 | Moon Over Miami | Norman Rust | Episode: "Farewell, My Lovelies" |
1994, 2014 | The Simpsons | Cliff Clavin, CGI Homer Simpson | Voices; 2 episodes: "Fear of Flying", "Treehouse of Horror XXV" |
1995 | Murphy Brown | Felix | Episode: "A Rat's Tale" |
Sister, Sister | Gus Kiamilikimaka | 2 episodes | |
1996 | Caroline in the City | Mr. Berman | Episode: "Caroline and Richard's Mom" |
Toy Story Treats | Hamm | Voice; Interstitials | |
1997 | Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child | Hinky | Voice; episode: "The Pied Piper" |
Sabrina, the Teenage Witch | Bob/Santa Claus | Episode: "Sabrina Claus" | |
The Detectives | Edsel | Episode: "Go West Old Man" | |
1998 | Remember WENN | Mr. Abernathy | Episode: "And If I Die Before I Sleep" |
2000 | Touched by an Angel | Merl | Episode: "Monica's Bad Day" |
Pigs Next Door | Ike Stump | Recurring voice | |
2001 | That '70s Show | Glen | Episode: "Holy Craps" |
The Drew Carey Show | Himself/Various | Episode: "Drew Live III" | |
2002 | Frasier | Cliff Clavin | Episode: "Cheerful Goodbyes" |
The Pennsylvania Miners' Story | Thomas "Tucker" Foy | Television film | |
2003 | 8 Simple Rules | Fred Doyle | 4 episodes |
2004–08 | Made in America | Himself | Host; 97 episodes |
2006 | Rodney | Episode: "Celebrity" | |
Mystery Woman: Redemption | Jim Carter | Hallmark movie | |
2008 | Our First Christmas | Joe Noll | |
2011 | Melissa & Joey | Arnie | Episode: "A House Divided" |
2012 | Matchmaker Santa | George | Hallmark movie |
2012–14 | Drop Dead Diva | Larry Kaswell | 3 episodes |
2013 | Bones | Bill Schumacher | Episode: "The Cheat in the Retreat" |
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation | Stu Kirchoff | Episode: "Torch Song" | |
2013, 2014 | Legit | Walter Nugent | 10 episodes |
Franklin & Bash | Judge Elliot Reid | 3 episodes | |
2014 | How Murray Saved Christmas | Officer Bender | Voice; television special |
2015 | The McCarthys | Charlie Ellis | Episode: "Hall of Fame" |
Hell's Kitchen | Himself | Episode: "11 Chefs Compete" | |
2017 | Lego Star Wars: The Freemaker Adventures | Major Bren Derlin | Voice; episode: "The Storms of Taul" |
2019 | Mom | Stan | Episode: "Audrey Hepburn and a Jalapeño Pepper" [45] |
The Goldbergs | Digby Yates | Episode: "Food in a Geoffy" [46] | |
Forky Asks a Question | Hamm | Voice; Short films: "What is Money?", "What is a Friend?" | |
2020 | Just Roll with It | Grandpa | 4 episodes |
Bob Hearts Abishola | Hank | Episode: "Randy's a Wrangler" | |
2021–24 | Monsters at Work | Adorable (Yeti) / Bernard | Voices; 8 episodes |
2023 | Poker Face | Abe | Episode: "The Night Shift" |
2024 | WondLa | Caruncle | Voice; Episodes: "Chapter 3: Bargain", "Chapter 4: Ghosts" |
Year | Title | Voice role |
---|---|---|
1995 | Toy Story | Hamm |
1996 | Toy Story: Activity Center | |
Disney's Animated Storybook: Toy Story | ||
1999 | Toy Story 2: Buzz Lightyear to the Rescue | |
2001 | Toy Story Racer | |
2002 | Monsters, Inc. | Yeti |
2004 | Trivial Pursuit: Unhinged | Himself |
2005 | The Incredibles: Rise of the Underminer | The Underminer |
2006 | Cars | Mack |
2009 | Cars Race-O-Rama | |
2010 | Toy Story 3: The Video Game | Hamm |
2012 | Kinect Rush: A Disney-Pixar Adventure | |
2013 | Disney Infinity | |
2014 | Disney Infinity 2.0 | |
2015 | Disney Infinity 3.0 | |
2016 | Disney Magic Kingdoms | |
2018 | Lego The Incredibles | The Underminer |
2019 | Kingdom Hearts III | Hamm |
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2008–16 | Toy Story: The Musical | Hamm | Voice |
Year | Title | Director | Executive Producer | Writer | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1978 | Crown Court | No | No | Yes | 1 episode |
1980 | ITV Playhouse | No | No | Yes | |
1990 | Sydney | Yes | No | No | |
1988–91 | Cheers | Yes | No | No | 4 episodes |
1990, 1991 | Down Home | Yes | No | No | |
1994 | Madman of the People | Yes | No | No | 3 episodes |
Locals | No | Yes | No | TV Movie | |
Evening Shade | Yes | No | No | 1 episode | |
Sister, Sister | Yes | No | No | ||
1996 | Pearl | Yes | No | No | |
The World's Most Incredible Animal Rescues | No | Yes | No | TV Special | |
1997 | The World's Most Incredible Animal Rescues: Part 2 | No | Yes | No | |
1998 | The World's Most Incredible Animal Rescues: Part 3 | No | Yes | No | |
2010 | Industrial Tsunami | No | Yes | No | Documentary |
Year | Association | Category | Project | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1985 | Primetime Emmy Award | Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series | Cheers | Nominated | [47] |
1986 | Nominated | [48] | |||
Toy Story is a 1995 American animated comedy film produced by Pixar Animation Studios for Walt Disney Pictures. The first installment in the Toy Story franchise, it was the first entirely computer-animated feature film, as well as the first feature film from Pixar. The film was directed by John Lasseter, written by Joss Whedon, Andrew Stanton, Joel Cohen, and Alec Sokolow based on a story by Lasseter, Stanton, Pete Docter, and Joe Ranft, produced by Bonnie Arnold and Ralph Guggenheim, and features the voices of Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Annie Potts, John Ratzenberger, Don Rickles, Wallace Shawn, and Jim Varney.
Pixar Animation Studios, known simply as Pixar, is an American animation studio based in Emeryville, California, known for its critically and commercially successful computer-animated feature films. Pixar is a subsidiary of Walt Disney Studios, a division of Disney Entertainment, a segment of The Walt Disney Company.
Monsters, Inc. is a 2001 American animated comedy film produced by Pixar Animation Studios for Walt Disney Pictures. Featuring the voices of John Goodman, Billy Crystal, Steve Buscemi, James Coburn, Mary Gibbs, and Jennifer Tilly, the film was directed by Pete Docter, co-directed by Lee Unkrich and David Silverman, and produced by Darla K. Anderson, from a screenplay by Andrew Stanton and Daniel Gerson. The film centers on two monsters, the hairy James P. "Sulley" Sullivan (Goodman) and his one-eyed partner and best friend Mike Wazowski (Crystal), who are employed at the titular energy-producing factory Monsters, Inc., which generates power by scaring human children. However, the monster world believes that the children are toxic, and when a little human girl, Boo (Gibbs), sneaks into the factory, she must be returned home before it is too late.
Buzz Lightyear is a fictional character in the Disney–Pixar Toy Story franchise. He is a superhero action figure from an in-universe media franchise. Buzz is recognizable by his lime green, purple, and white space suit. Originating as a one-man band toy named Tinny, he evolved into a space ranger action figure during the development of Toy Story, a decision made by director John Lasseter. He is named after American astronaut Buzz Aldrin, the second person to walk on the Moon. Buzz Lightyear is a recurring character in all of the Toy Story franchise's animated feature films, including spin-offs. In the Toy Story films he is voiced by Tim Allen.
Toy Story 2 is a 1999 American animated adventure comedy film produced by Pixar Animation Studios for Walt Disney Pictures. It is the sequel to Toy Story (1995) and the second installment in the Toy Story franchise. The film was directed by John Lasseter, co-directed by Ash Brannon and Lee Unkrich, and produced by Helene Plotkin and Karen Robert Jackson, from a screenplay written by Andrew Stanton, Rita Hsiao, Doug Chamberlin, and Chris Webb, and a story conceived by Lasseter, Stanton, Brannon, and Pete Docter. Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Don Rickles, Jim Varney, Wallace Shawn, John Ratzenberger, Annie Potts, R. Lee Ermey, John Morris, Laurie Metcalf and Jeff Pidgeon reprise their roles from the first Toy Story film. In the film, Woody is stolen by a greedy toy collector, prompting Buzz Lightyear and his friends to save him, but Woody is then tempted by the idea of immortality in a museum.
Clifford C. Clavin, Jr. is a fictional character on the American television show Cheers played by John Ratzenberger. A postal worker, he is the bar's resident know-it-all and was a contestant on the game show Jeopardy! Cliff was not originally scripted in the series' pilot episode, "Give Me a Ring Sometime", but the producers decided to add a know-it-all character and Ratzenberger helped flesh it out. The actor made guest appearances as Cliff on The Tortellis, St. Elsewhere, Wings, and Frasier.
Knick Knack is a 1989 American animated short film produced by Pixar that was written and directed by John Lasseter. The short is about a snow globe snowman who wants to join the other travel souvenirs in a summer-themed party. However, the glass dome that surrounds him prevents him from doing so, thus leading to his many tries to break out of his snow globe. Knick Knack is Pixar's fourth short and the final short produced during the company's tenure as a hardware company. It was also the final Pixar short film released before the company's first feature-length film Toy Story.
John Alan Lasseter is an American film director, producer, and animator. He has served as the head of animation at Skydance Animation since 2019. Previously, he acted as the chief creative officer of Pixar Animation Studios, Walt Disney Animation Studios, and Disneytoon Studios, as well as the Principal Creative Advisor for Walt Disney Imagineering.
Peter Hans Docter is an American filmmaker and animator, who has served as chief creative officer (CCO) of Pixar since 2018. He has directed the company's animated films Monsters, Inc. (2001), Up (2009), Inside Out (2015), and Soul (2020). From his nine Academy Award nominations, he is a record-three time recipient of Best Animated Feature for Up, Inside Out and Soul. Docter has also won six Annie Awards from nine nominations, a BAFTA Children's Film Award and a Hochi Film Award. He describes himself as a "geeky kid from Minnesota who likes to draw cartoons".
Andrew Ayers Stanton is an American filmmaker and voice actor based at Pixar, which he joined in 1990. His film work includes co-writing and co-directing Pixar's A Bug's Life (1998), directing Finding Nemo (2003) and its sequel Finding Dory (2016), WALL-E (2008), and the live-action film, Disney's John Carter (2012), and co-writing all five and directing the upcoming latter in Toy Story films (1995–2026) and Monsters, Inc. (2001).
Joseph Henry Ranft was an American animator, screenwriter, and voice actor. He worked for Pixar Animation Studios and Disney at Walt Disney Animation Studios and Disney Television Animation. His younger brother Jerome Ranft is a sculptor who also worked on several Pixar films.
Tiny Toy Stories is a home video compilation of five computer-animated short films made by Pixar. It was released on October 29, 1996, by Walt Disney Home Video and Disney Videos internationally. The International releases, including the UK and Japan, have the Toy Story characters hosting it and talking about the shorts. Additionally, the international releases have Knick Knack and Tin Toy switched, to exemplify how "without Tin Toy, there would've been no Toy Story".
"Give Me a Ring Sometime" is the pilot episode and the first episode of the first season of the American situation comedy Cheers. Written by Glen and Les Charles and directed by James Burrows, the episode first aired September 30, 1982, on NBC in the contiguous United States and on October 14, 1982 in Alaska. The pilot episode introduces the characters at the Cheers bar in Boston: employees Sam Malone, Diane Chambers, Coach Ernie Pantusso, and Carla Tortelli; and regular customers Norm Peterson and Cliff Clavin. In this episode, Diane, brought in by her fiancé, meets the employees and patrons of the bar. When she realizes that her fiancé has left her alone in the bar, Diane accepts Sam's offer to be the bar's waitress to start over.
Toy Story is an American media franchise created by Pixar Animation Studios and owned by The Walt Disney Company. It centers on toys that, unknown to humans, are secretly living, sentient creatures. It began in 1995 with the release of the animated feature film of the same name, which focuses on a diverse group of toys featuring a classic cowboy doll named Sheriff Woody and a modern spaceman action figure named Buzz Lightyear.
Toy Story 4 is a 2019 American animated comedy-drama film produced by Pixar Animation Studios for Walt Disney Pictures. It is the fourth installment in Pixar's Toy Story series and the sequel to Toy Story 3 (2010). It was directed by Josh Cooley from a screenplay by Andrew Stanton and Stephany Folsom; the three also conceived the story alongside John Lasseter, Rashida Jones, Will McCormack, Valerie LaPointe, and Martin Hynes. Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Annie Potts, Don Rickles, Wallace Shawn, John Ratzenberger, Jeff Pidgeon, Laurie Metcalf, John Morris, Joan Cusack, and Estelle Harris are among the actors who reprise their character roles from the first three films, and are joined by Tony Hale, Keegan-Michael Key, Jordan Peele, Christina Hendricks, Keanu Reeves, and Ally Maki, who voice new characters. Set after the third film, Toy Story 4 follows Woody (Hanks) and Buzz Lightyear (Allen) as the pair and the other toys go on a road trip with Bonnie (McGraw), who creates Forky (Hale), a spork made with recycled materials from her school. Meanwhile, Woody is reunited with Bo Peep (Potts), and must decide where his loyalties lie.
Luck is a 2022 animated comedy film directed by Peggy Holmes and co-directed by Javier Abad, from a screenplay written by Kiel Murray, and a story conceived by Murray and the writing team of Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger, based on an original concept created by Rebeca Carrasco, Juan De Dios, and Julián Romero. Produced by Skydance Animation, the film features the voices of Eva Noblezada, Simon Pegg, Jane Fonda, Whoopi Goldberg, Flula Borg, Lil Rel Howery, Colin O'Donoghue, and John Ratzenberger. Set in the Land of Luck, the story follows the unluckiest person, Sam Greenfield (Noblezada), as she must unite with a talking black cat named Bob (Pegg) to turn her luck around.
Forky Asks a Question is an American animated television series of short films produced by Pixar Animation Studios based on the Toy Story franchise, and is set after the events of Toy Story 4. It is the third Pixar short series, following the Cars Toons and Toy Story Toons. The series focuses on the character of Forky as he asks his friends different questions about life.
Skydance Animation, LLC is an American animation studio that is a division of Skydance Media, founded on March 16, 2017. The studio is based in Los Angeles, with offices in East Hartford, Connecticut and Madrid, Spain; the Madrid branch was originally Ilion Animation Studios.
"I jumped on the environmental bandwagon in 1967", says Ratzenberger, who in 1989 co-founded Eco-Pak Industries in Kent, Wash.